THE 2012 OSCAR NOMINATIONS ARE HERE!

God, I love Oscar nomination morning. It’s like Christmas, but I wake up earlier and I can share my presents with the world.

BUT TILDA!!!!!! FASSY!!!!! BROOKS!!!!! There is also a lot of sadness today too. We must be respectful in our joy over GARY!!!! and all of the other people that muscled their way in for a nomination.

The Biggest Winners: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Moneyball, War Horse

The Biggest Losers: Drive, The Help, Tilda and Fassy.

Without further ado, here are the 2012 nominations.

Best Picture:

The Artist

The Descendants

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

The Help

Hugo

Midnight in Paris

Moneyball

The Tree of Life

War Horse

How I Did: 8/9 – I missed Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. Even looking at the nominees, I’m still shocked it’s in. But the love in the nomination room for Von Sydow and this film was there and that was very clear. I am also so happy for The Tree of Life getting here like I knew it should and feared it wouldn’t.

Director:

Woody Allen – Midnight in Paris

Michel Hazanavicius – The Artist

Terrence Malick – The Tree of Life

Alexander Payne – The Descendants

Martin Scorsese – Hugo

How I Did: 5/5 – Thank God for predictability. I wonder how far away Bennett Miller and David Fincher were. They were clearly right in there.

Best Actor:

Demian Bichir – A Better Life

George Clooney – The Descendants

Jean Dujardin – The Artist

Gary Oldman – Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

Brad Pitt – Moneyball

How I did: 3/5 – I guess the two most vulnerable did drop. But there are many things going on here. J. Edgar got completely snubbed which means I don’t have to see it. Tinker Tailor and Gary showed strength, but signifying nothing, and the Academy is really opening them up to worthy performances with not one but two foreign nominees. Bravo! (Sorry Fassmember! You should’ve been there!)

Best Actress:

Glenn Close – Albert Nobbs

Viola Davis – The Help

Rooney Mara – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Meryl Streep – The Iron Lady

Michelle Williams – My Week with Marilyn

How I Did: 4/5 – Tilda!!! That skank actress Rooney Mara snuck in and took a spot from our girl. I guess it really does show the strength of Dragon Tattoo and being last.

Best Supporting Actor:

Kenneth Branagh – My Week with Marilyn

Jonah Hill – Moneyball

Nick Nolte – Warrior

Christopher Plummer – Beginners

Max von Sydow – Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

How I Did: 4/5 – Poor Albert Brooks. I actually don’t feel as bad for Albert Brooks than as I do for those who wanted Albert Brooks to get nominated. It really did seem like he had it. It was never guaranteed, but nor was Jonah Hill! And for all of the 6th spot sneaker nomination Max von Sydow is not the best choice.

Best Supporting Actress:

Bérénice Bejo – The Artist

Jessica Chastain – The Help

Melissa McCarthy – Bridesmaids

Janet McTeer – Albert Nobbs

Octavia Spencer – The Help

How I Did: 4/5 – Color me shocked. I didn’t think Melissa could do it. And poor Shailene got Andrew Garfielded which is officially the term for being a young supporting thespian in a wordy heady Best Picture contending drama that got several nominations, but was doled a telling snub at the SAG awards which led to ultimate rejection. I am just thrilled that Jessica Chastain did not get locked out. She deserved it. This and Bichir are both strong testments to looking at SAG for future years.

Best Original Screenplay:

The Artist

Bridesmaids

Margin Call

Midnight in Paris

A Separation

How I Did: 3/5 – Margin Call really had a lot of heat, but that was in November. I’m surprised to have seen it bounce back. This does confirm my one problem with my own line up that it was too happy and they threw out my comedies for not one, but two dramas. Gotta love that sadness.

Best Adapted Screenplay:

The Descendants

Hugo

The Ides of March

Moneyball

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

How I Did: 4/5 – Maybe a year from now someone will be able to explain to me why The Ides of March is getting any awards attention at all. But I guess if it were to be nominated somewhere, it would be the prestigious play adaptation aspect of it with the Clooney celebrity to boot. This is one category that shows The Help’s weakness. If it had a shot at Best Picture, it needed this. Sorry ladies… and Tate.

Best Art Direction:

The Artist

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Hugo

Midnight in Paris

War Horse

How I Did: 3/5 – I’m sure there is some lovely story about exterior art direction in War Horse, but this just gives the tiniest pushes to Midnight in Paris. I guess it could have gotten lots of below the line nominations, but none were really expected. I wonder if it will beat The Artist in Original Screenplay. Look for clues elsewhere in the nominees to predict winners. And the snub for Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is officially my most egregious snub of the day. It is just appalling.

Best Cinematography:

The Artist

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Hugo

The Tree of Life

War Horse

How I Did: 4/5 – While I correctly guessed the love for digital helmer Jeff Cronenweth, I didn’t expect the ultra traditional Janusz Kaminski to sneak in for War Horse. I guess that was a nomination for Most Cinematography.

How I Did: 4/5 –

Best Costume Design:

Anonymous

The Artist

Hugo

Jane Eyre

W.E.

How I Did: 3/5 – I predicted the surprise Anonymous nomination in the wrong spot! Damn! But I did get W.E. and that makes me glad. The costume designers have yet again showed that they are clearly paying attention to the craft in a way only a costumer designer can and are doing their honest best to nominate the best costume design of the year. A commendable branch.

Best Film Editing:

The Artist

The Descendants

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Hugo

Moneyball

How I Did: 4/5 – You win some, you lose some. The Descendants did get that nomination they so desperately wanted/needed, but at the expensive of… something undeserving? All I know is Moneyball is a true surprise and the editing there is heartfelt and tender at best. The editing brach has taken their first step in making up for the Inception snub last year…

Best Makeup:

Albert Nobbs

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

The Iron Lady

How I Did: 2/3 – Glenn Close’s nose.

Best Original Score:

Ludovic Bource – The Artist

Alberto Iglesias – Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

Howard Shore – Hugo

John Williams – The Adventures of Tintin

John Williams – War Horse

How I Did: 4/5 – They love John Williams and hate Dario Marianelli. What else is new? However, the Alberto Iglesias nomination for Tinker Tailor is a moody surprise stand out.

Best Original Song:

“Man or Muppet” – The Muppets

“Real in Rio” – Rio

How I Did: 1/2 – I would not be surprised if this category did not exist next year. This is clearly a stand from the song branch that the field is too weak. And “Real in Rio”? Wow.

Best Sound Mixing:

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Hugo

Moneyball

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

War Horse

How I Did: 2/5 – Damn it War Horse! All of my Pirates always nominated nonsense caused me to take it out at the last second. Look at how strong Moneyball is! The strength in weird pockets like this and Editing should translate to wins elsewhere… in either Actor or Adapted Screenplay or both. It’s a spoiler lying in wait for sure. This is also where The Artist really missed out on what Moneyball picked up. I don’t think it shows great weakness for The Artist, just its first not-perfect performance.

Best Sound Editing:

Drive

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Hugo

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

War Horse

How I Did: 2/5 – So I had Hugo in the wrong place. Oops. This is also the first year in a three or four without an animated feature and really only one visual effects heavy film – two staples of the category. I honestly think that’s a shift in the branch to recognize more realistic challenges in their field like in Drive and War Horse where a lot of those sounds don’t sound made up, but are painstakingly made as real as possible. Good job, Sound Editors!

Best Visual Effects:

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Hugo

Real Steel

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

How I Did: 4/5 – REAL FUCKING STEEL! Over THE TREE OF LIFE?!?!?! This is my most infuriating snub of the day. I said it was something else, but really?!? I can’t believe it. ARGH! I wonder if the name will ever officially be changed to Best Computer Visual Effects.

Best Animated Feature:

A Cat in Paris

Chico and Rita

Kung Fu Panda 2

Puss in Boots

Rango

How I Did: 2/5 – And proud of it. The Animator’s branch knew it was a shitty year and stuck out on a limb for the arthouse guy… twice. I’m not sure the right other films made it in, and it is definitely a comment on motion capture, but the animators have stood strong.

Best Documentary Feature:

Hell and Back Again

If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front

Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory

Pina

Undefeated

How I Did: 3/5 – Here is one of those inside baseball times where the Joe Schmo viewer at home can’t see Harvey Weinstein shoving Undefeated down everyone’s throats. But it worked. He is the best at what he does.

Best Foreign Feature:

Bullhead

Footnote

In Darkness

Monsieur Lazhar

A Separation

How I Did: 3/5 – Besides the fact that Footnote is the weirdest nominee here, there is nothing too surprising. I am sad that Pina didn’t make super bizarre trivia history. It was so close…

Best Animated Short Film:

Dimanche/Sunday

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

La Luna

A Morning Stroll

Wild Life

Best Documentary Short Film:

The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement

God is The Bigger Elvis

Incident in New Baghdad

Saving Face

The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom

Best Live-Action Short Film:

Pentecost

Raju

The Shore

Time Freak

Tuba Atlantic

I guess overall, this was a year of many quiet surprises. Nothing ever really came out of left field, but the status quo was never really upheld. I went 72 out of 104 or about 69%. So I passed, but barely. How do I even call myself an Oscar predictor? However, I’m glad that many of my missteps were from assuming predictability and stodgy attitudes from the Academy, which I will never do again. They really spread the love this year, with many films as individual nominees and a few of the choices were almost inspired. Moneyball as the 3rd place nomination count holder? Just shocking. And with the snub of Shailene Woodley, it is officially the end of the chances for The Descendants. The Oscar goes to The Artist and I’m as pleased as punch. What is exciting is that since Bridesmaids stumbled ever so slightly, that Supporting Actress race is still hot, which means 3 of the 4 acting races are still up in the air, as are director, and both screenplay races. This season is not over yet.